DARKTOWN FIRE BRIGADE PRINT FIREMAN DEMORALIZED

Product Description
Please Note: These prints are examples of the horrible stereotyping that was done about African Americans in the late 1800’s. They are offered here for historical perspective and we mean no offense, either for the images or the language attributed to the characters. Both the captions and artwork were all used in the original posters.
The2FunAdGuyz offer a new, high-quality reproduction, print of one of the infamous “Dark Town Comics”, published by Currier & Ives. Most Americans think of Curriers & Ives as producing bucolic scenes that appeared on holiday greeting cards, but they also has a less serene side that appealed to the prejudices of people who lived at the time.
This print is one of a group now called “The Darktown Fire Brigade”. There are around a dozen of the series—six of them in black and white and an equal number of full color prints—such as this one. All of the series have the same chief and several recognizable firefighters.
“Slightly Demoralized” is the name of this print, and it is the companion piece to another print called “All On Their Mettle”. In this print, the Darktown Brigade (in red shirts with the red fire wagon” is shown immediately after racing with another group of firefighters (In blue shirts and a blue pumper). A crash resulted and various red and blue shirted firefighters are now fighting. The Chief, atop the wrecked blue team pumper, is shown holding his megaphone like a trophy while one of the losers is about to light his shirt on fire.
The first line of the caption reads: “The Darktown Fire Brigade – Slightly Demoralized.”
The second line of the caption reads: “I knowed we’d make ‘em take water! [ Sic.]”
You can find all of the Darktown Fire Brigade prints by typing “Darktown” in our store search box and they will display.
They are a must-have for collectors of black memorabilia or Currier & Ives reprints. Unfortunately these caricatures masked the bravery of thousands of African-American firefighters in hundreds of communities who stood as the only way their community could deal with the toll of fires in their towns.
The lithography printers, Nat Currier and Jim Ives, did this banner. From their business on Spruce Street in Brooklyn, New York, they printed over 1 million prints covering over 7500 different titles from 1834 to 1907. Though their lithographs are in high demand today, they once described their business as "Publishers of Cheap and Popular Pictures".
PAPER QUALITY: This new print is on a highest quality, acid-free, 100-pound glossy premium text paper that allows for maximum color brilliance and fidelity for older images.
AVAILABILITY: In Stock! – Ships Within 1 Business Day of cleared payment.
Image Size: 14.5 inches wide by 10.5 inches high.
Paper Size: 17 inches wide by 11 inches high. This allows for a small border around the image for matting and framing. When matted, this format is perfect for a standard 16-inch x 20-inch frame, a manageable size for a wide variety of decorating purposes.
PLEASE NOTE, The watermark (The2FunAdGuyz) across the thumbnail does NOT appear on the item you will receive.
©All copy and digitally enhanced images and prints copyright 2003-2011 by the2funadguyz. All Rights Reserved.